Hydraulic equalizing connections



Oct.'27, 1959 F. E. SULLINGER HYDRAULIC EQUALIZI-NG CONNECTIONS Filed May 15, 1956 in RI INVENTORZ FRANCIS E. SULLINGER ATTORNEY United States Patent O HYDRAULIC EQUALIZING CONNECTIONS Francis E. Sullinger, Franklin, Pa., assignor to Joy Manufacturing Company, Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application May 15, 1956, Serial No. 585,083

7 Claims. (Cl. 213-75) This invention relates to equalizing connections and more particularly to hydraulic equalizing connections between the articulated parts of a mobile apparatus.

In a copending application Serial No. 558,452, filed January 11,1956, now Patent No. 2,832,482, owned by the assignee of the present invention, equalizing connections are disclosed between the conveyor sections of a mobile conveyor mechanism which may be moved along the rails of a tunnel trackway. The present invention resides in the detail structure of the hydraulic equalizing connections of this copending application.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide improved equalizing connections between articulated mobile parts for pivotally connecting the latter together. Another object is to provide improved equalizing connections of the hydraulic type. Yet another object isto provide improved hydraulic equalizer connections comprising parallel cylinder and piston devices connected by bypass means whereby fluid may flow freely from the ends of the cylinder of one device to the ends of the cylinder of the other device. These and other objects and advantages of the invention will, however, hereinafter more fully appear.

In the accompanying drawing there is shown for purposes of illustration one form which the invention may assume in practice.

In this drawing:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary side view of a tunneling apparatus in which an illustrative form of the invention is embodied.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged horizontal section taken on line 22 of Fig. 1, showing details of one of the equalizing connections.

Fig. 3 is a detail cross section taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2, showing one of the bypass means.

Fig. 4 is a plan view of a portion of a tunneling apparatus, showing the arrangement of the equalizing connections at the sides of the apparatus and with the latter negotiating a curved trackway.

In accordance with the present invention, the improved equalizing connections, generally designated 1, are embodied in a tunneling apparatus, generally designated 2, with the equalizing connections extending longitudinally in spaced apart parallelism to provide space for the passage of a train of mine cars 3 received within the tunneling apparatus. The tunneling apparatus includes conveyor mechanism, generally designated 4, and a conventional loading machine, generally designated 5, having an extensible drawbar connection 6 with the conveyor mechanism. An extensible conveyor 7 is connected between the conveyor mechanism and the loading machine directly below the drawbar connection 6, and a wheeled truck 8 traveling on the tunnel trackway supports the rearward portion of the extensible conveyor as at 9.

The conveyor mechanism 4, as disclosed in the copending application above referred to, is made up of a series of articulated parts or sections coupled together by the equalizer connections 1, in end to end relation and gaging the treads of the rails 11 of the'tunnel trackway.

These shoes or skids have depending inner flanges which ride along the inner edges of the rail treads in such a manner to enable ready negotiation of the usual switches and frogs of the trackway while retaining the shoes on the track rails, as is fully disclosed in the copending application Serial No. 558,452, mentioned above. As is also disclosed in the above mentioned copending application, these shoes each have oppositely inclined ramplike portions providing upper track surfaces overlying the rail treads and over which the wheels 12 of the mine cars may travel as the train of cars moves along the tunnel trackway beneath the conveyor mechanism 4 which overlies the cars in the manner shown. The shoes or skids 10 support upright end frames 13 which extend oppositely at the sides of the mine cars and are provided with horizontal upper portions 14 whichsupport the conveyor sections 15 of the conveyor mechanism. The upright end frames 13 are rigidly connected in spaced apart relation as by connecting elements 16, desirably in the form of crossed struts or brace rods.

The conveyor sections 15 each includes an endless conveyor belt 17 and-are arranged in cascade relation so that the discharge end of one conveyor overlies the receiving end of another in a well-known manner. The wheeled truck 8 has a pivotal connection 18 with a front frame 19 connected to the forwardly located end frame 13 of the conveyor mechanism.

Now referring to the detail structure of the equalizing connections 1 between the conveyor sections for connecting the latter together, it will be noted that the same each includes a pair of extensible fluid devices in the form of parallel cylinder and piston mechanisms 21 in cluding fluid cylinders 22 containing reciprocable pistons 23. The cylinders are pivotally connected at 24 to an upright frame 13 of a conveyor section for horizontal swinging movement, and the pistons 23 have piston rods 25 which are pivotally connected at 26 to an upright frame 13 of an adjacent conveyor section. Evidently the cylinders and piston rods may have universal pivotal connections with the upright frames to provide for limited vertical swing in addition to horizontal swing. The ends of the cylinders are connected together by bypass means in the form of conduits 27 and 28 which may, at least in part, be flexible, and hydraulic fluid, preferably a light oil, contained in the cylinders may bypass freely through these conduits between the cylinders as the conveyor mechanism moves along a curved trackway, as shown in Fig. 4. Equal displacement of hydraulic fluid within the cylinders maintains constant pressure against the opposite sides of the pistons in the cylinders, thus providing equal pull on each cylinder and piston device in all relative positions of the pistons. It is therefore evident that there may be equal push or pull on each of the parallel devices 21.

The connections 21 are so arranged and constructed at the sides of the conveyor sections out of the path of the train of mine cars that they do not interfere with the undercarriages of the mine cars. By the provision of these connections 21 the conveyor mechanism may be skidded along the track rails either forwardly or rearwardly and may move along a trackway which is curved (Fig. 4). The train of mine cars may be moved in any suitable manner along the tunnel trackway and over the track engaging skids of the conveyor supports, with the mine cars located beneath the upper conveyors, as shown in Fig. 1. The conveyor mechanism may be moved along the tunnel trackway by the loading machine, in the manner fully disclosed in the copending application above referred to.

As a result of this invention improved equalizing consible. By the provision of the improved hydraulic cylinder and piston devices connected together by bypass means the articulated parts are rigidly connected together against endwise movement in either direction while they are at all times free to pivot horizontally with respect to each other. The improved arrangement of the hydraulic cylinder and piston devices at the outer sides of the conveyor frame sections provides space therebetween for the passage of mine cars as the latter move within the frame sections beneath the conveyor mechanism. Other advantages of the invention will be clearly apparent to those skilled in the art.

While there is in this application specifically described one form which the invention may assume in practice, it will be understood that this form of the same is shown for purposes of illustration and that the invention may be modified and embodied in various other forms without departing from itsspirit or the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A hydraulic equalizing connection for pivotally connecting the articulated parts of a mobile apparatus for movement together along a straight or curved path comprising parallel cylinder and piston devices pivotally connected to the parts connected together thereby permitting relative horizontal swinging movement having relatively reciprocable cylinder and piston elements pivotal'ly connected to the parts respectively, and free liquid bypass means between the ends of said cylinder elements whereby liquid may flow freely between said cylinder elements.

2. A hydraulic equalizing connection as set forth in claim 1 wherein said bypass means provides a closed liquid system so that irrespective of the relative positions of said cylinder and piston elements the opposite ends of each cylinder element at opposite sides of the piston element therein are at all times filled with liquid.

3. A hydraulic equalizing connection for pivotally connecting the articulated parts of a mobile apparatus for movement together along a straight or curved path comprising parallel spaced apart cylinder and pistondevices pivotally connected at their ends to the parts and arranged at opposite sides of the parts connected thereby and providing an open space therebetween to permit movement of other parts longitudinally between said devices.

4. A hydraulic equalizing connection as set forth in claim 3 wherein said cylinder and piston devices comprise cylinder elements containing reciprocable pistonelements, and free bypass means between the opposite ends of said cylinder elements at opposite sides of said piston elements to permit free flow of liquid between said cylinder elements.

5. A hydraulic equalizing connection comprising parallel cylinder and piston devices pivotally connected at their ends to the articulated parts of a mobile apparatus for pivotally connecting the parts for movement together along a straight or curved path connected at their ends by bypass conduits extending between the cylinders of said devices whereby liquid may flow freely from one cylinder to the other thereby to obtain equal displacement of liquid between the devices to permit the apparatus to travel along a curved path while the par-ts'are at all times rigidly connected together as regards endwise movement in either direction.

6. A hydraulic equalizing connection as set forth in claim 3 wherein a closed hydraulic fluid system is provided including bypass connections extending between the ends of the cylinders of said devices whereby 'liquid may flow freely between the cylinders as the pistons move therein.

7. A hydraulic equalizing connection as set forth in claim 5 wherein said bypass conduits are embodied in a References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Mercier Oct. 21, 194-1- Orbits May 24, 1955 

